CLEVELAND - The IU Indianapolis men's basketball team will open the 2026 Horizon League Tournament on Monday night (Mar. 2) when the Jaguars face No. 10 Cleveland State (10-21) in the Play-In Round on ESPN+. Monday's game will tip-off at 7:00 p.m. and can be heard in Central Indiana on 1430 Indy's Sports Ticket. 

The Jaguars and Vikings played to a split of the regular season series with each team winning on its own home floor. More recently, the Jaguars have dropped six straight and haven't won since the 82-74 win over Cleveland State inside the Jungle back on Feb. 7. Cleveland State has dropped seven-in-a-row to close the regular season. 

The winner of Monday's game will advance to take on No. 1 Wright State on Wednesday night (Mar. 4) at 7:00 p.m. while the loser's season will come to an end. 

Junior Kyler D'Augustino continues to rate among the Horizon League's top players, ranking third in the league in scoring (18.3 ppg), while also ranking among the league leaders in field goal percentage, assists and minutes played. Senior Finley Woodward recently set the program record for assists in a season during the Division I-era (191) and is on the cusp of breaking the all-time record of 194, set by Greg Simmons in 1989-90. Woodward, who ranks 21st in the country in assists with 6.2 assists per game, is also on pace to become the first player in school history to average more than five rebounds and five assists a game. 

Freshman Maguire Mitchell comes in on a tear, having scored in double-digits in seven straight games, including back-to-back 20-point efforts. 

QUOTABLE
"Obviously things have been really tough for us this year. We knew there were going to be some speed bumps along the way, and this isn't just a first year thing. I think we've gotten better and now we're on to the tournament where all the regular season goes away and it's win or go home," head coach Ben Howlett said following the regular season loss to Purdue Fort Wayne. 

SCOUTING CLEVELAND STATE
CSU is 10-21 overall and 6-8 at home this season. The Vikings are an exceptional three-point shooting team, hitting 37.4 percent overall and making nearly 11 treys per contest. Four Vikings average double-digits, led by Dayan Nessah (15.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg), Tre Beard (13.0 ppg, 83 3's) and Chevalier Emery (12.6 ppg). Emery does the bulk of his damage off the bench, having started just one game this season. Jaidon Lipscomb (12.5 ppg, 88 3's) and Beard have both hit more than 80 treys this season.  

SERIES HISTORY
IU Indy is 5-15 all-time against Cleveland State and 1-9 in 10 games in Cleveland. The home win on Feb. 7 snapped the Jaguars' 14-game losing streak to the Vikings.